


Five Times to Die- An Inbetween Story

by ErinisMagic



Category: The Avengers (2012)
Genre: Angst, Depression, M/M, Suicide Attempt
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-01-04
Updated: 2013-01-04
Packaged: 2017-11-23 14:12:21
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,297
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/623049
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ErinisMagic/pseuds/ErinisMagic
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It was scary, he mused, the concepts of life and death; that thin line between them that so many were terrified of crossing. Yet here he was, sitting beside the most lively person he had ever known, who had willingly walked across it. Hell, he practically threw himself over!</p>
            </blockquote>





	Five Times to Die- An Inbetween Story

**Author's Note:**

> So you can read this story on its own, or as a scene-between-the-scenes a story called Five Times to Die by Queebi on deviantART (which is how I wrote it).   
> Characters in this story are property of Marvel and all that jazz, and enjoy!

Natasha had been in the hall when she heard the sirens. She didn't think much of them at first. She hadn't felt the tell-tale shaking that accompanied any explosions in Stark's lab or an appearance of the Hulk, and she felt fairly sure that there weren't any other ways that one of her teammates would get injured badly enough to require a hospital. Had she been near a window, she would have seen the flashing lights as they approached, stopping at the entrance to Stark Towers. _Then_ she would have worried. But, for now, she had no reason to assume that things were going horribly wrong in her very own home, and simply believed that the ambulance had stopped at one of the other buildings on the street.

That night, everything had seemed completely normal. That was, however, until she heard the chopped voices of the emergency medics barking out orders from the direction of Stark's lab.

Concerned now, Natasha picked up speed, following the sound of the voices. As she walked, she ran into Clint, Steve, and Thor, all of whom also knew that something was not right. Where they had stopped was the point where all of the hallways on the floor met up, so Natasha knew that they would at least get to talk to the medical team as they left.

“Any idea of what's going on?” Steve asked. He and Clint had been in the living room when they saw the ambulance pull up and immediately went out to check on the others. They had found Thor in the kitchen and were on their way down the the lab when they ran into Natasha.

Natasha shook her head and looked down the hall. The doctors were coming out of Stark's lab now, all gathered around a stretcher as they moved quickly down the hall, still calling out orders. The small group stepped slightly closer as they passed, craning their necks to see who was being taken, although it was rather obvious. The Hulk would protect Banner from anything dangerous, which meant, as the stretcher passed, they saw Tony Stark being rushed away, motionless and, quite possibly, not breathing.

Natasha took a step back, eyes wide in shock. Steve's fists were clenched, face frozen in horror. “Oh my god...” Clint muttered under his breath. Thor remained silent, watching the medics take Tony away, confusion and concern in his eyes.

As soon as the medics had taken Tony and disappeared into the elevator, the small group moved towards the lab. There they found a very distraught Dr. Banner, but, to their relief, no sign of the Hulk.

“Doctor Banner,” Thor spoke up, “What has happened?”

One of Bruce's hands twisted through his messy hair as the other pointed towards the interior of the lab. “I... he....” Bruce stammered, not even turning to face the group.

“Doctor Banner,” Steve pressed, stepping forward.

“He... he.... he tried to kill himself,” he finally managed to choke out.

A tide of disbelief swept over the group. While they knew that what Bruce was saying was most likely true, this was Tony they were talking about. _Tony._ Possibly one of the most narcissistic men in the world. Yet as they walked into the lab, seeing the whiskey and pill bottles scattered across the floor, they knew it was true. Not even Tony could be that stupid.

They set about cleaning up the lab, each lost in their own thoughts. They all felt guilty; felt that they should have paid more attention to Tony, should have noticed that he was hurting and done something to stop it.

The cleanup didn't take long, and soon they had finished. They then left their apartments and headed down to the garage, a silent understanding that they would be going to the hospital. They all piled into one car and set off. Natasha, whose voice was the most steady at the moment, called Fury and Pepper to let them know what had happened. After getting off the phone, she quietly told the rest of the team that the two of them would be meeting them at the hospital. Apart from the murmured recognition, no one else made a sound until they arrived.

Steve, Thor, and Clint sat anxiously in the waiting area, waiting for the doctor to come and tell them that Tony would be alright. Bruce sat apart them, expecting news that something had gone horribly wrong. Natasha sat with him, offering a comforting presence but not saying a word, until Pepper arrived, then Fury. She told them, in detail, what she knew of what had happened. Her story had a few holes in it, which is why Fury asked to speak with Bruce next.

Bruce trembled a bit as he spoke, but did his best to maintain his composure. Fury didn't stay long after Bruce finished speaking. His parting words were “Tell him I'll pay him a vacation if he's so riled up!”, called over his shoulder as he walked off.

It felt like ages before the doctor came out. When he said the procedures went without a hitch, a tide of relief passed over the team. Bruce stopped listening after that, but caught phrases like “He'll need to be put on anti-depressants” and “Someone should keep an eye on him” as the doctor continued speaking to the rest of the team. Pepper sat at his side, eyes red and puffy from tears.

Just as the doctor went to leave, Pepper spoke up. “Are we allowed to see him?” The doctor seemed to consider this for a moment before saying that Tony was currently sleeping, but, yes, they were allowed to visit. Only one person at a time, though. Then, the doctor was gone, tending to other patients.

The team debated who should visit Tony first, if anyone should really go at all (Natasha was of the view point that he probably wouldn't want to see any of them anyway, at this point). They agreed that it should be Bruce, after he brought up the fact that the 'Other Guy' wasn't taking the stress too well.

They waited in the hall when Bruce went in, tears forming at the corners of his eyes as he looked at his boyfriend, pale and fragile against the sheets. He pulled a chair up to Tony's bedside, letting the tears fall freely as he did so. No one was in here to see and besides, who could blame him for crying? When Tony did wake up, what was Bruce going to say? Should he try to comfort him? Or ask him why he did it? Or should he take a different approach? He had never been in a situation like this before.

It was scary, he mused, the concepts of life and death; that thin line between them that so many were terrified of crossing. Yet here he was, sitting beside the most lively person he had ever known, who had willingly walked across it. Hell, he practically threw himself over! How long had Tony been feeling this way? When did it start? Why did it start?

_How the hell had none of them noticed?_

They were a team. They were supposed to watch out for one another, protect each other. How did no one pick up on the fact that Tony felt bad enough to want to take his own life?

Bruce blamed himself. He felt that he should have noticed. With the others, he could understand not realizing. It can be hard to pick up on the signs if you don't know exactly what they are. But he had been there, knew what it was like. Why hadn't he noticed?

Bruce sighed, taking Tony's hand in his own, and waited for him to wake up.


End file.
